Shoulder guard



1,516,644 G. L. PIERCE SHOULDER GUARD Filed May 12, 1923 2 Shets-Sh eet 1 Nov. 5, 1924.

- G. L. PIERCE 1516644 SHOULDER GUARD Filed M2 1?, 1923 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 131 van 262 George LJk'eme,

Patented Nov. 25, 1924.

GEORGE L. PIERCE, 0F BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOB TO A. G. SIALDING & BROS, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

SHOULDER GUARD.

Application fifled May 12,

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE L. PIERCE, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Brooklyn, in the county of Kings and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Shoulder Guards, of which the following is a speci lication.

I aim to provide a guard or armour for use of football, baseball or other like players which may be economically made and which will be effective in affording adequate protection to the player.

The invention consists in the features and combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter described and defined by the ap pended claims.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a plan view of the complete guard or armour in a form adapted for pro-- tecting the shoulder.

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section substantially on line 22 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a transverse section substantially on line 3*3 of Fig. 1.

Fig. at is a sectional detail view.

The shoulder guard comprises a series of tubular members 1, made preferably of fiber, and these are arranged substantially parallel with each other on the pad or slightly divergent, to suit the conditions of the location to which the pad is adapted. They are held by strips 2, preferably of leather, passing through the tubes and caught by a line of stitching 3 to the pad material. The tubes are slightly separated from each other, and are held also by lacing 4 which passes through the overlying material 5, which may be of leather. This lacing also passes through the pad material 6 and it makes the overlying leather 5 conform to the tubes at their ends and provides pocket formations in which the ends of the tubes are located, and which aid in holding the tubes against longitudinal displacement. The tubes may be otherwise held, for instance, by a continuous strip of material running through them from one to the other. These guard members may be employed on the front and rear flaps, as well as the shoulder flap of the guard, and the same structure may be employed in connection with other sport guards or clothing, such as on the pants or shin guards.

In providing the tubular members, fiber 1923. Serial No. 638,592.

tubes originally of circular cross sectional shape may be employed, which are flattened down in order to get an elliptical cross sectional shape of the tubes as illustrated. The tubes may be flattened by soaking them in water and then subjecting them to pressure. These flattened tubes provide broad inner and outer faces, the curvature of which is considerably less than that of a semicircle. They afford extended outer surfaces to receive the impact of the blows to which the player is subjected during the progress of the game and absorb the shock resulting therefrom. Their inner surfaces of low curvature distribute the shock over a considerable portion of the underlying pad material and thus relieve the wearer of the force of the blows. The pad material is reinforced by lines of stitches 7 extending substantially parallel with the fiber stays or tubes. and about midway between them, so that the pad material presents a corrugated surface with the convex faces against the inner curved faces of the guard tubes. The pad material is thus held against undue lateral displacement and a substantial body or thickness of this material is thereby maintained directly under the guard tube and each guard tube has its own prescribed body of pad material confined locally between the adjacent lines of stitches.

The leather shoulder guard 8 is provided with a retaining loop 9 and there is also an elastic retaining strap 10.

The retaining loop 9 may be of any desired material such as a solid rubber member or a tube. It has attached to it at its ends the elastic member 9 This elastic member extends from side to side of the cap or leather shoulder guard and preferably between it and the pad on the under side of said cap so as to give the desired amount of stretch. The elastic is of fiat webbing and may be of any desired width. It does not come in direct contact with the wearer.

Preferably it passes through openings 9 in the end portions of the leather cap within the line of stitching 11 which therefore does not penetrate the webbing.

It is sewed or otherwise secured to the loop 9. This arrangement of elastic webbing pulls evenly on the cap or guard member and holds the same down to the shoulder of the wearer.

Reverting to the guard as a whole it will be seen that the fibre tubes belonging to the main part of the collar bone guard extend lengthwise of this portion whereas the fibre tubes of the front and rear flaps extend substantially at right angles to the tubes of the main part of the collar bone guard.

I claim:

1. A guard or armour for football players and the like comprising apad to be attached to the person, and substantially rigid stays of tubular substantially elliptical cross sectional form, and with their broader sides facing respectively inwardly against the pad and outwardly to. receive the blows, and

means for attaching said stays to the pad,

substantially as described.

2. A guard or armour for football players and the like comprising a pad to be attached to the person, and stays of tubular substantially elliptical cross sectional form, and With their broader sides facing respectively inwardly against the pad and outwardly to receive the blows, and means for attaching said stay to the pad, consisting of a strip passing through the tube and attached to the pad, substantially as described.

3. A guard or armour for football players and the like comprising a pad to be attached to the person, and stays of tubular substantially elliptical cross sectional form, and with their broader sides facing respectively inwardly against the pad and outwardly to receive the blows, and means for attaching said stays to the pad, consisting of a separate strip for each tube passing therethrough and fastened to the pad material, substantially as described.

4:. A guard for foot ball players and the.

like comprising a pad to be attached to the person, and stays of tubular form, and means for attaching the stays to the pad consisting of a strip of flexible material passing through the tube and attached to the pad, substantially as described.

5. In combination, a pad having spaced apart substantially parallel lines of stitches,

and a plurality of individual stays of tubu lar form and of substantially rigid material, each of said stays resting with its rounded surface upon the face of the pad between the lines of stitches, and means for holding the stays in place, each stay being backed by the portion of the pad confined between the adjacent lines of stitches, substantially as described.

6. In combination, a pad of substantial thickness, substantially rigid, stays bearing on the outer face thereof, material carried by the pad and overlying the ends of the stays and lacing passing through the said overlying material over the end portions of the stays and through the pad and making pocket formations for the ends of the stays, substantially as described.

7. In combination, a guard comprising a backing and substantially rigid stays composed of tubular fiber of substantially elliptical cross sectional shape, substantially as described.

8. In combination, a guard composed of backing material and substantially rigid tubular fiber stays flattened from tubular form and presenting the broad low curved faces inwardly and outwardly respectively, substantially as described.

9.111 combination with a. shoulder cap and the pad material secured thereto, a rubber loop, and elastic webbing secured to the ends of the loop and extending from side to side of the cap, substantially as described.

10. In combination with a shoulder cap and the pad material secured thereto, a rubber loop, and elastic webbing secured to the ends or the loop and extending from side to side, said webbing passing inwardly. through openings at opposite sides of the cap and then between the cap and the pad connected therewith, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof, I afiix my signature.

GEORGE L. PIERCE. 

